Find out how the renovation of an old mountain train line will benefit a remote region of France:   

• New stations and a restaurant with a terrace and a panoramic view to serve expected increased numbers of visitors.
• Boosting local businesses, including a museum, restaurants and shops.
• Increased capacity on the train line will bring an anticipated 100 000 tourists to the site every year.

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Future Europe features a podcast episode from each of the EU’s 28 Member States. Each episode tells the story of a project that illuminates the way Europeans will live in the future. All the stories are told through the voices of people involved in the projects.

Would you take a train somewhere, just so you could… take a train?

Well, until recently, an average of 80 000 passengers a year came to ride on the La Mure railway, half-way in between Lyon and Nice in France. Taking a train to… take this train was the most convenient option, even though probably many also came by car and other forms of transportation. The train didn’t take them anywhere they needed to go in particular – they just came for the ride. So what made the La Mure railway so special?

Spectacular views in the Alps

The 30-kilometer train line was built over a hundred years ago to transport coal from mines in the region. After the mines closed, it was converted into a successful tourist route offering spectacular views over mountains and lakes to be enjoyed out of distinctive red train cars. 

In 2010 all this came to an end when a landslide destroyed parts of the track. Since then, the line has remained closed, and many local businesses have struggled to keep going.

Until now.

Jacques Chansavang stands in the middle of the mountain village of La Mure in the picturesque Dauphiné Alps. Despite the tranquil surroundings, Chansavang is leading major engineering works there.

Chansavang works for Edeis, a French engineering firm which is tasked with renewing and upgrading the damaged and old railway facilities in the area.

“There will be a modern, bigger station, and the train line is going to go through the mountain, and it will finish at a new restaurant with a very nice view over the lake,” he promises.

Christmas presents in July

The mayor of La Mure, Eric de Bonnier, is enthusiastic – to put it mildly. He says they’ve been waiting for this project to begin for nearly ten years, and now that it’s beginning, he can’t wait for the results. “This project is fantastic. We couldn’t hope for more, it’ll will be like having a Christmas present in July,” he adds.

He expects the project to bring national and international visibility to this village in the Alps, promote tourism and create jobs.

The project is being realized with the help of funding from the EIB to Mirova – a major French financial institution which is then in turn funding the project.

Guillaume Faroux, a senior director at Mirova, says that the collaboration with the EIB has benefited smaller projects and local initiatives – such as La Mure -  that might otherwise have been overlooked.

“We are very pleased to have the European Investment Bank on board. Its presence enhances the project. When you tell people on that the money comes partly from the EIB, it really is important because the Bank has so much experience with infrastructure investment in the whole of Europe. Their commitment goes really beyond simply providing money,” he says. 

Faroux adds that the EIB’s presence has helped to attract additional investors. Which is important, as the project needs public and private investors working together.

“The La Mure train is a challenging project because there are a lot of disciplines involved in terms of construction. We are erecting new buildings, renovating the lines, bridges and tunnels. It took a lot of time to work out with our partners in local government and with the engineers from Edeis,” he explains.

And they are even upgrading the original red carriages dating from the 1930s!

No wonder they put building a bigger station in their plans, to accommodate the anticipated increase in the number of tourists – who will (hopefully) take the train to… take the train.